NEW YORK  In a nod to Wall Street's frustrations with his company's repeated failure to meet earnings expectations, Coca-Cola (KO) CEO Neville Isdell on Thursday cut Coke's long-term forecasts, while announcing a big boost in annual marketing dollars.

Speaking to analysts and reporters, Isdell cut earnings forecasts for beyond 2005 to high single digits annually from the current 11% to 12%. He forecast volume growth — a key measure for beverage companies — of 3% to 4%, down from 5% to 6%.

AP file

Isdell

Wall Street's response: a 21-cent drop (0.5%) in Coca-Cola's stock price, which closed at $40.96. The stock is down more than 50% from a peak of $88.94 in 1998.

More ads will be designed to run globally. A couple of examples were shown at the meeting, including an upcoming European holiday ad by McCann Spain that also might air in the USA. It's a lighthearted look at people doing holiday good deeds, set to a fast, rock version of I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas.

•Training. So far, 1,000 managers have been trained in revenue-growth management. An additional 25,000 will be trained next year. The program includes "internal incentives that will be aligned with external objectives," said Fayard.